Rumor: Mass Effect trilogy remaster will be out before next April

Electronic Arts said yesterday that it intends to release 14 new games during the next fiscal year, which runs until the end of March 2021. Titles weren't revealed, although four were confirmed as sports games—so, new Madden, new FIFA, new NHL, and a mysterious fourth—and there will also be mobile games in the mix, some indie stuff from partnered developers (which doesn't really fit any definition of "indie" that I'm aware of, but never mind), some new IP, and "an additional EA HD title."

It was all fairly conventional and unremarkable as these things go, but got more interesting today when VentureBeat reported that the HD title in question will in fact be a remaster of the Mass Effect trilogy. There's no more to it than that, but it's an entirely unambiguous statement—"that HD remaster of an EA game is the Mass Effect Trilogy"—and VentureBeat's Jeff Grubb was confident enough in it that he tweeted specifically to draw attention to the statement.

The report is unverified, but it's hardly far-fetched. The Mass Effect trilogy wrapped up in 2012—an eternity ago for all practical purposes—and the one game we've had since then, Mass Effect: Andromeda, is best forgotten. In fact, that may be part of the strategy at play here. A report surfaced in late 2019 that a new Mass Effect was in "very early development," and what better way to remind people of just how magical Mass Effect was than by dropping a remastered trilogy ahead the big comeback announcement?

There's also the fact that an awful lot of us will line up to throw money at it, which I'm sure is being factored into the decision-making process as well. I've emailed Electronic Arts to inquire about the rumor, and will update if I receive a reply.

Andy covers the day-to-day happenings in the big, wide world of PC gaming—the stuff we call "news." In his off hours, he wishes he had time to play the 80-hour RPGs and immersive sims he used to love so much.